Will I Need to Renew My CRN?

Even though fitting registrations expire after 10 years, and the CRN is no longer valid for repair work, alterations or new construction, users may keep using the same fittings in error.

If a fitting is registered in one province it will be valid in that province for 10 years from the approval date. If the same fitting is registered in another province at a later date, it will expire in all provinces at the 10th anniversary of the registration in the first province.

Registrations of fittings shall be resubmitted for validation not more than ten years after the date of acceptance by the regulatory authority in the original registering province. (CSA B51-09 4.2.1)

Pressure Vessels and Boilers

Pressure vessel CRNs do not expire. The manufacturer can make as many copies of the design as they want without re-registering. If the code of design changes like the change from TEMA to UHX on heat exchangers, then the manufacturer will need to re-register the design to continue production. Similarly the change from 1998 to 1999 material strength values required re-registration if the manufacturer wanted to take advantage of the allowed higher stress levels.

The pressure vessel calculations need to get reviewed yearly by an authorized inspector to check for continued compliance to the current code, the same as under a National Board registered production.

Any number of boilers, pressure vessels, fittings, fired-heater pressure coils, and piping systems may be constructed from a registered design until a change in the applicable Act, Codes; or Standards invalidates the design, in which case the design shall be obsolete and no further construction to the design shall be made after the effective date of the change as established by the Act. When the Act does not specify an effective date of change, the effective date shall be the date specified in the changed document or six months from the published date of the change, whichever comes first (CSA B51-09 4.1.2)

Piping Systems

Piping systems need to be re-registered for each installation unless it is a duplicate installation at the same address. If you are making multiple copies of skids, see if you can register your piping system as a fitting instead (it will need to be less than 1.5 cuft for the whole piping system). If so, you can avoid having to register each item sold. Many duplicate designs classify as piping systems and need to be registered each time they are sold even though they are identical. Note that B51-09 4.1.2 (quote above) says that the manufacturer can make as many copies of the piping system as they want; the provinces require the piping installation address as part of the registration making this impossible. For example see TSSA) and ABSA.

Update on Piping Systems

Due to ongoing registration problems with designs that are built multiple times and piping systems often on skids that need to be moved, the jurisdictions are working on various solutions. At this time none of this is finalized, but the following preliminary information is available: Ontario is working on Standard Piping registrations which will allow the piping system to be built more than once without need for re-registration, and/or allow the finished piping system to be used at more than one address. Alberta has created a registration process for mobile piping (Mobile Piping). Saskatchewan will require the piping system to be registered for each address it will be used at. ACI is allowing piping systems over 1.5 cuft to be registered as Category H fittings which will allow them to be built multiple times or moved after installation.